Automobile door with upwardly folding lower section



Feb. 28, 1956 AUTOMOBILE DOOR WITH UEWARDLY FOLDING LOWER SECTION H. W. PAYNE Filed March 19, 1954 Harold W Payne IN V EN TOR.

(puny Em United States Patent AUTOMOBILE DDOR WITH UPWARDLY FOLDING LOWER SECTION Harold W. Payne, San Bernardino, Calif.

Application March 19, 1954, Serial No. 417,428

3 Claims. (Cl. 296-49) This invention relates generally to improvements in vehicle doors and pertains more particularly to an extension assembly for the door portion of a vehicle door which will swing inwardly when the door is open to permit the door to be opened over relatively high obstacles, such as high curbs or the like.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a vehicle door, an extension therefore which is normally urged to swing inwardly and upwardly to a normally horizontal position for permitting the door to open over relatively high obstacles and which is provided with means clampable with a cam plate positioned on an associated vehicle to swing the extension to a substantially vertical position when the door is in closed relation to the vehicle.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside inthe details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure l is a perspective view showing a door constructed in accordance with this invention in the open position;

Figure 2 is a sectional view showing the position of parts when the extension is in engagement with the cam late; p Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 but shows the door in closed position; and

Figure 4 is a horizontal section taken substantially along the plane of section line 44 in Figure 3.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, reference numeral indicates a vehicle body generally which is provided with the usual side opening 12 mounted in part by the corner post 14 and the sill panels 16. The door is indicated generally by the reference character 18 and consists of an upper main portion 20 and a lower extension portion 22.

The main portion 20 is formed with the inner and outer panel members 24 and 26, respectively, interconnected by the side panels 23 and 30. The lower ends of the side panels project below the lower edges of the inner and outer panels and between these projections the upper end of the body of the extension is disposed and hingedly attached thereto by the provision of a horizontal hinge rod 32 which extends through the projections of the side panels and the main body portion of the extension. The extension is provided with a medial recess 34 and a torsion spring 36 is disposed concentrically of the hinge rod within this recess and has opposite end portions 38 and 40 bearing against the upper door portion and the extension, respectively, to normally urge the extension to its substantially horizontal position as shown in Figure 1. To limit the inward swinging movement of the extension, it will be noted that the lower edge 42 of the inner panel 24 engages against the inner surface of the body 22.

A lower corner of the extension is cut-away as indicated by the reference numeral 44 and a roller 46 is disice "portion 52 in the path of,the roller 46 such that when the door is swung to a closed position, the roller will strike the cam plate and be deflected downwardly to swing the extension to the substantially vertical position when the door is closed, see particularly Figure 3.

The lower edge of the outer panel 26 has an offset marginal portion 54 which overlies the upper edge of the outer surface of the extension when the door is in a closed position to prevent the entry of foreign mate rial and moisture.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will be readily understood and further explanation is believed to be unnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. In combination with a vehicle having a body provided with a side door opening, a door hingedly secured to said body for selective movement into closing relationship with said opening, said door including an upper main portion and a lower folding obstruction clearing portion, said portions being pivotally interconnected so that the folding portion may swing upwardly and inwardly to provide clearance for the door over a relatively high obstacle, gutter curbings for example, spring means for normally urging said folding portion to the inwardly swung curb clearance position, and means for swinging said folding portion downwardly to its normal vertical position when the door is in its regularly closed position, said last named means comprising a roller mounted on the folding portion and a complemental cam plate mounted fixedly on said body in the path of movement of said roller.

2. In a vehicle door having inner and outer panel members joined by opposite side panels having portions projecting below the lower edges of the same, a lower folding section for the door comprising a body member having one end disposed between the projections of said side panels, a hinge rod extending through said pro jections and said body member so that the folding section is hingedly connected to the door for movement about a horizontal pivot axis, means for normally urging said section to a substantially horizontal position, a roller on the free edge portion of one corner of said folding section adapted to engage a cooperating cam plate on an associated vehicle, whereby said section will be swung to a substantially vertical position when the door is in closed position, said inner panel providing a stationary abutment along its lower edge for positioning the extension substantially horizontally, and said outer panel having its lower edge offset to dependingly overhang the upper edge of said section when the latter is in the substantially vertical position.

3. In combination, a vehicle body structure provided with a door opening and a customarily swingable hingedly mounted door cooperating with and normally closing said door opening, said door embodying a major upper section, and a complemental lower section, said upper section being provided at its bottom with a horizontal fixedly mounted hing-ing rod, said lower section being hingedly mounted on said rod and spring biased to swing inwardly and outwardly in a vertical plane about a horizontal axis when the door is released and swung to open position so that said lower section then assumes an out- 3 4 of-theway position which, under ordinary circumstances, References Cited in the file of this patent will swing over and clear a relatively high curb stone UNITED STATES PATENTS or an equivalent obstruction, said lower section being provided at its extreme lower end and adjacent one cor- 679,822 B h b Aug 6, 1901 ner portion with a freely rotatable roller, and an L- 5 2,101,147 L D 7, 1937 shaped bracket fixedly mounted in said body structure in the path of movement of said roller, the vertical portion FOREIGN PATENTS of said bracket providing a cam plate and the latter 565,683 France 10, 1923 functioning to cooperate with the roller and said lower section to maintain the latter in its normal vertical posi- 10 tion When the door is fully closed. 

